OCCUPATIONS :B
| BACKEND MAN | person in textile mill working on stretching machine |
| BACKMAKER | made "backs", vats, tubs, a Cooper |
| BACKMANN | baker |
| BACKSTER | baker |
| BACK'US BOY | kitchen servant (from "back of the house") |
| BACK WASHER | employed to clean the wool in the worsted manufacturing industry |
| BADGER | licensed pauper who wore a badge with the letter P on it and could only work in a defined area (the term "Badgering comes from this"). A corn miller or dealer or an itinerant food trader |
| BADGY FIDDLER | boy trumpeter in the military |
| BAGMAN | travelling salesman |
| BAGNIOKEEPER | n charge of a bath house or brothel |
| BAILIE | officer of the sheriff, a land steward acting on behalf of the Landowner or Landlord and in Scotland a magistrate of the burgh, also looked after the fishing rights on certain rivers |
| BAILIFF | officer of the sheriff, a land steward acting on behalf of the Landowner or Landlord and in Scotland a magistrate of the burgh, also looked after the fishing rights on certain rivers |
| BAILLEE | officer of the sheriff, a land steward acting on behalf of the Landowner or Landlord and in Scotland a magistrate of the burgh, also looked after the fishing rights on certain rivers |
| BAILLIE | officer of the sheriff, a land steward acting on behalf of the Landowner or Landlord and in Scotland a magistrate of the burgh, also looked after the fishing rights on certain rivers |
| BAIRMAN | pauper or beggar |
| BALER | bales hay and in the mills one who bailed wool or cotton goods |
| BALISTER | archer most commonly a crossbow-man |
| BALLARD MASTER | in charge of loading the ballast into the hold of empty ships |
| BALLAST HEAVER | loaded ballast into the hold of empty ships |
| BALLER | assisted the potter by measuring out the balls of clay |
| BALLER UP | assisted the potter by measuring out the balls of clay |
| BAL MAIDEN | female mine worker who worked on the surface (also a Pit Brow Lass) |
| BAND FILER | metal worker in the gun making industry |
| BANDSTER | bound the wheat sheaves after harvest |
| BANG BEGGAR | officer of the parish who controlled the length of stay of any stranger to the parish |
| BANKER | dug trenches and ditches to allow drainage of the land, placing the surplus earth in banks around the edge |
| BANKSMAN | employed in the mining industry being in charge of the cages at the pit head (sometimes known as a bank manager) |
| BARBER | a barber also a surgeon (an Act was passed that limited Barbers to hair-cutting, shaving, dentistry and blood letting in the 18th century) |
| BARBER SURGEON | a barber also a surgeon (an Act was passed that limited Barbers to hair-cutting, shaving, dentistry and blood letting in the 18th century) |
| BARD | poet or minstrel |
| BAREMAN | beggar or pauper |
| BARGEE | worked on or owned and operated a barge |
| BARGEMAN | worked on or owned and operated a barge |
| BARGE MATE | Naval officer |
| BARILLA MANUFACTURER | made barilla, a substance obtained from burning saltworts, the resulting mixture of sodium salts being used in the glass and ceramics industry |
| BARKEEPER | another name for a toll keeper |
| BARKER | tanner |
| BARTONER | in charge of the monastic farm, also known as a barton |
| BASIL WORKER | worked with sheep and goat skins |
| BASKETMAN | made baskets and furniture from wicker, and also employed to empty the basket of coal being offloaded from the colliers into the barges |
| BASS | employed in dressing fibre or matting |
| BAST DRESSER | employed in dressing fibre or matting |
| BATHING MACHINE PROPRIETOR | owned and hired the changing huts used at the seaside in the by bathers |
| BATMAN | officers servant in the army |
| BATTER OUT | sliced a short cylinder of clay (a bat) from a "pug" and threw it onto a mold shaped for the face of a ceramic plate |
| BATTLEDORE MAKER | made the beaters used on clothes carpets etc to remove the dust (later made the paddles used in washing machines) |
| BATT MAKER | made the wadding used in quilt and mattress making |
| BAUER | farmer |
| BAXTER | baker |
| BAXTER | baker |
| BAYWEAVER | who wove bay (a fine woollen fabric also known as baize) |
| BEACHMAN | Assists boat owners in handing trippers into boats and/or in launching boats, etc. Sometimes himself rows for pleasure parties for an hourly or other fee. During the winter he does odd jobs about the beach, e.g. sets lobster pots for fishermen, paints boats for other owners, etc. |
| BEADLE | officer of the parish whose principle duty was to keep order, also was the town crier |
| BEADMAN | employed to pray for his employer, inhabitant of an almshouse / poorhouse / hospital or tenant employed by the manor for a specific service |
| BEAD PIERCER | employed to drill the holes in beads |
| BEADSMAN | employed to pray for his employer, inhabitant of an almshouse / poorhouse / hospital or tenant employed by the manor for a specific service |
| BEAMER | winds the warp on the roller before putting it on the loom in the textile industry |
| BEARER | worked underground carrying the coal to the bottom of the pit shaft and placed it in the containers for uplifting to the surface |
| BEATER | cleansed and thickened the cloth by treading it underwater with fullers earth (aka Fuller) |
| BEAVER | made felt used in hat making |
| BECK | baker |
| BECKER | baker |
| BEDEL | officer of the parish whose principle duty was to keep order, also was the town crier |
| BEDELL | officer of the parish whose principle duty was to keep order, also was the town crier |
| BEDESMAN | employed to pray for his employer, inhabitant of an almshouse / poorhouse / hospital or tenant employed by the manor for a specific service |
| BEDMAN | sexton |
| BEDRAL | in Scotland a minor church official |
| BEDWEVERE | made the webbing for bed frames and also a one who wove quilts |
| BEESKEPMAKER | made beehives |
| BEETLER | operated a beetling machine, used in the textile trade for embossing fabric |
| BELHOSTE | tavern keeper. |
| BELLEYETERE | bell-founder |
| BELLFOUNDER | made bells |
| BELL HANGER | installed bells in churches |
| BELLMAN | employed as a watchman or town crier or who worked for the post office and collected letters for the mail coach by walking the streets and ringing a bell |
| BELLOWFARMER | responsible for the care and maintenance of the church organ |
| BELLOWS MAKER | made bellows used for organs or blacksmiths fires |
| BELLY BUILDER | built and fitted the interiors of pianos |
| BELTER | made bells |
| BENDER | cut leather |
| BESOM MAKER | made brooms |
| BESSWARDEN | appointed by the parish to look after its animals |
| BEVER | beverage maker |
| BIDDY | female servant usually of Irish stock |
| BILLIER | operated a Billy Roller, a machine used in the cotton industry to prepare the cotton for spinning |
| BILLITER | made bells |
| BILL POSTER | put up notices, signs and advertisements |
| BILLYMAN | operated a Billy Roller, a machine used in the cotton industry to prepare the cotton for spinning |
| BINDER | bound items, e.g., books, hats etc . |
| BIRD BOY | employed to scare away birds from crops |
| BIRD CATCHER | caught birds for selling |
| BIRDS NEST SELLER | sold bird nests collected from the wild complete with eggs which were then hatched by domestic birds and sold as pets |
| BIRLYMAN | in Scotland a ground officer or parish arbiter |
| BLACK BORDERER | made black edged stationery for funerals |
| BLACKING MAKER | made polish for shoes |
| BLACK TRAY MAKER | made Japanned trays |
| BLADESMITH | sword-maker or knife maker |
| BLAXTER | bleached cloth or paper pulp |
| BLEACHER | bleached cloth or paper pulp |
| BLEMMERE | plumber |
| BLENTONIST | water diviner |
| BLINDSMAN | employed by the Post Office to deal with incorrectly addressed letters and parcels |
| BLOCKCUTTER | made wooden blocks used in the hat trade or laid down the blocks on which a ships keel was laid |
| BLOCKER | made wooden blocks used in the hat trade or laid down the blocks on which a ships keel was laid |
| BLOCK MAKER | engraved the blocks used in the printing trade |
| BLOCK PRINTER | printer who used wooden blocks for printing |
| BLOODLETTER | used leeches for letting blood, this was thought to be a cure for many ailments |
| BLOODMAN | used leeches for letting blood, this was thought to be a cure for many ailments |
| BLOOMER | produced iron from ore, a bloom smithy |
| BLOWER | glass blower, one who operated a "blowing machine" used to clean and separate fibres in the textile trade, one who operated the bellows at a blacksmiths |
| BLOWFEEDER | fed the fibres into a "blowing machine" |
| BLUESTOCKING | female writer |
| BLUFFER | innkeeper or landlord of a pub |
| BOARDING OFFICER | inspected ships before entering port |
| BOARDMAN | truant officer who checked school attendance. a tenant of manorial land who paid rent by maintaining the manor's table |
| BOARDWRIGHT | made tables and chairs aka carpenter |
| BOATMAN | worked on a boat, predominately on rivers and canals also the name given to a boat repairer |
| BOATSWAIN | ship's officer in charge of rigging & sails |
| BOBBER | who polished metals one who helped to unload fishing boats |
| BOBBIN CARRIER | worked in spinning and weaving sections of the mills |
| BOBBIN TURNER | made the bobbins used in the spinning and weaving industry |
| BOBBY | policeman usually of constable rank |
| BODEYS MAKER | made bodices for women's garments |
| BODGER | craftsman who made wooden chair legs and the spars and usually worked in the actual woodland that they cut the timber in |
| BODY MAKER | made bodices for women's garments |
| BOILERMAKER | worked with metal in any industrial setting |
| BOILER PLATER | made rolled iron plate used to make boilers for steam engines etc |
| BOLL | looked after power looms in the weaving industry |
| BOLTER | sifted meal |
| BONDAGER | female worker on a farm who was bonded |
| BONDMAN | bonded to a master for the purpose of learning a skill or trade |
| BONDSMAN | stood bond or surety for another where a bond was required by law |
| BONE BUTTON TURNER | made buttons using a lathe |
| BONE LACE MAKER | made pillow lace |
| BONE MOULD TURNER | made the moulds for button manufacturers |
| BONE PICKER | collected rags and bones aka Rag and Bone Man |
| BONESETTER | set broken bones |
| BONIFACE | keeper of an inn |
| BOOK GILDER | decorated books with gold leaf |
| BOOKHOLDER | prompter in the theatre |
| BOOK KEEPER | looked after the accounts for businesses |
| BOOKMAN | student |
| BOONMASTER | surveyor of roads with the responsibilities of maintaining and repairing the road |
| BOOTBINDER | employed to operate the machines which bound footwear |
| BOOT CATCHER | servant at inn who pulled off traveller's boots |
| BOOT CLOSER | worked in the shoe trade stitching together all the parts of a shoe upper |
| BOOTHMAN | corn merchant |
| BORLER | who made cheap coarse clothing |
| BORSHOLDER | regional name (Kent) for a constable |
| BOTCHER | tailor or cobbler |
| BOTTILER / BOTTLER | made leather containers for holding liquids eg wine flasks or water bottles |
| BOTTLE BOY | pharmacists assistant |
| BOTTOMER | worked down the pits moving the ore etc to the bottom of the shaft for removal |
| BOTTOM KNOCKER | sagger makers assistant in the pottery industry |
| BOTTOM MAKER | moulded the bottoms for saggers in the pottery industry |
| BOWDLER | worked with iron ore |
| BOWKER | bleached yarn. A local term in some parts of Lancashire for a butcher |
| BOWLER | made bowls and dishes and also a term used for those who made the rounded part of spoons before casting |
| BOWLMAN | dealer in crockery |
| BOWLMINDER | in charge of the vats used for washing raw wool before processing |
| BOWLWOMAN | dealer in crockery |
| BOWYER / BOWER | made bows used in archery |
| BOZZLER | parish constable |
| BRABENER | weaver |
| BRACHYGRAPHER | shorthand writer |
| BRAIDER | made cord by twisting threads or strips of leather |
| BRAILLER | made girdles |
| BRAKEMAN | operated the winch at the pit head or operated the braking mechanism on trains and trams |
| BRAKESMAN | operated the winch at the pit head or operated the braking mechanism on trains and trams |
| BRASILER | dyer |
| BRAZIER | worker with brass |
| BREWSTER | female brewer or brewer |
| BRIGHTSMITH | metal worker |
| BRILLIANDEER | craftsman who polishes diamonds |
| BRODERER | embroiderer |
| BROIDERER | embroiderer |
| BROOM-DASHER | dealer in brooms |
| BROOM SQUIRE | broom maker |
| BROTHERER | embroiderer |
| BROWDERER | embroiderer |
| BROW GIRL | female employed at the pit head |
| BROWNSMITH | works with copper or brass |
| BUCKLER | made buckles |
| BUCKLESMITH | made buckles |
| BUCKLE TONGUE MAKER | made the metal points that go in the holes of a belt |
| BUCKRAM MAKER | worked with buckram (used in stiffening materials) e.g. belts, lapels and collars |
| BUCK WASHER | laundress |
| BUDDLEBOY | employed to use and maintain the vats used in the lead and tin mines for washing the ore |
| BUDDLER | women and children who washed the ore in the copper mines |
| BUFFALO SOLDIER | soldier serving in a black regiment in the US Army |
| BULLOCKY | one who attended to the daily needs of cattle and may also have lent a hand with general farm duties, especially during busy periods |
| BULLWHACKER | oxen driver |
| BUMBOAT MAN | met ships at anchor with goods for passengers and crew to purchase |
| BUMMAREE | middle man between the wholesaler and the retailer at the fish markets |
| BUMMER | army deserter |
| BUNTER | female rag & bone collector |
| BURELER | made borel, a woollen cloth with a coarse feel |
| BURGESS | represented a borough at official levels |
| BURGOMASTER | mayor |
| BURLER | quality inspector for clothing |
| BURLEY MAN | person assisting constable to enforce by-laws |
| BURMAIDEN | chambermaid or lady-in-waiting |
| BURNEMAN | carrier of barm or water for brewers |
| BURYE MAN | grave digger |
| BUSHELER | tailor's helper |
| BUSHEL MAKER | cooper |
| BUSKER | hair dresser |
| BUSS MAKER | maker of guns |
| BUTNER | button maker |
| BUTTER CARVER | made imprints in butter pats |
| BUTTON BURNISHER | button polisher |
| BUTTY | negotiated mining contracts and supplied the labour |
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